Douwe Egberts
About:
Douwe Egberts was founded in 1753 by Egbert Douwes and his wife Akke Thysses. They began selling coffee, tea and tobacco in their small shop, 'De Witte Os' (literally 'The White Ox'), in Joure, the Netherlands. Originally their only customers were the local villagers.
However, about 1780 when his son Douwe Egberts joined the business, he built up a regional reputation by also supplying shop owners elsewhere, thereby spreading the family brand around the country. Gradually, Douwe and his descendants built a company that grew to become the Dutch market leader for coffee and tea, its core products.
Since 1978 Douwe Egberts has been allied to the Sara Lee Corporation, which opened new horizons worldwide. It is now one of the top three largest coffee roasters in the world.
